RESPECT RESPONSIBILITY HONESTY DETERMINATION Dingwall ... · in the transition programme during the Summer holidays and we look forward to welcoming them ... Next June there will

RESPECT RESPONSIBILITY HONESTY DETERMINATION

News

JUNE

2017

Dates for your Diary: Tue 27th & Wed 28th June Activity Days Friday 30th June School Closes 12pm Monday 14th August Staff Return Tuesday 15th August Pupils Return Monday 18th & Tuesday 19th September In-service

June 2017 ● Volume 5, Issue 9 ● Dingwall Academy ● 01349 869 860 ● www.dingwallacademy.com

Prizewinners

Dingwall Academy

The annual School Prizegiving took place in a packed games hall on Wednesday 7th June. Guest speaker was Judo Star Stephanie Inglis. Stephanie impressed us all with the story of her amazing recovery, and her positive approach to life.

Welcome to Mr Liddle and Ms Glass who have recently been appointed to posts at Dingwall Academy. Both will be based in Pupil Support and we look forward to working with them. We are delighted to confirm that Mr Hilton (Geography) and Miss Brooman (PE) will be staying with us for another year. This means that all last year’s probationers will be with us again next year. At the end of session we say goodbye to Mr Lyall. Mr Lyall has taught History and Modern Studies and was also very involved in school drama. He taught Drama to S3 and also founded the school Drama Club DADS. Mr Lyall is moving to a new post at Inverness Royal Academy and we would like to wish him well and thank him for all he has done during his time at the school. Farewell also to Mrs Silvester in Pupil Support. Mrs Silvester has worked closely with a number of pupils and their families and we wish her well in her new post as PT Pupil support at Lochaber High School. Retiring at the end of the session are Mrs Morton from Pupil Support and Mrs Grieve from Business and Computing. We thank them both for their time at the school.

Notes & News


Primary 7 visit Last week we welcomed Primary 7 pupils into the school. Pupils had the opportunity to follow their new timetables and meet new teachers. Moving to secondary school can be a nervous time and so we hope that the three day visit helped to allay any worries or concerns. A large number of the P7 pupils will be taking part in the transition programme during the Summer holidays and we look forward to welcoming them back for this.

Parent Council AGM Thank you to the Parent Council for all their help and support throughout the year. The Parent Council AGM takes place on Monday 4th September at 7pm. All parents are very welcome to attend.

SQA Results SQA Results are due to be issued to pupils on 8th August. All candidates receive a certificate by post but if pupils would also like to receive their results via text or email then they can register for this at www.mysqa.org.uk. Pupils must be registered by 18th July. Pupils and parents are reminded that there is no system for appeal available after results this year. A number of pupils may want to request option changes following the exam results. Principal Teachers Pupil Support will be available to discuss option changes in the Multi-Purpose Hall at 11am

on Monday 14th August. Many classes in the senior phase are already full and so unfortunately it may not

be possible to meet all option change requests.

Notes & News


Sunny Spanish Sport Next June there will be an opportunity for pupils to go on a Watersports Trip to Spain. Pupils will be staying 5 nights full board in a 3 star hotel in Pineda de Mar. During the trip pupils will take part in a range of activities such as paddle boarding, windsurfing, Kayaking, sailing, cycling and beach games. There will also be an opportunity to spend a day at a waterpark as well as a sightseeing trip to Barcelona. The cost of the trip is £780. This price includes coach travel, flights, accommodation, all activities, all meals including breakfast, lunch, dinner and entrance fee to the waterpark. If your son/daughter is interested in coming on this exciting trip, they can collect an information letter from Miss L Bennie in the PE department.


From Malaga to Dingwall ...

On Monday and Tuesday 23rd/ 24th May, five members of the IES Santa Barbara School in Malaga; on an Erasmus+ funded project, were welcomed to the school. The main purpose of this visit was to see how deaf children and young people are supported in the mainstream and the teaching of sign language to deaf and hearing young people. They took the opportunity to shadow some of the lower school pupils to their mainstream classes and also

engaged in discussions with staff on teaching methodology, classroom practice, behaviour management and inclusion. They also gained an insight into support from the young people’s perspective and the value of work experience placement in preparation for leaving school. They remarked on the politeness of pupils, their standard of behaviour and the respect the young people had for their teachers. Showing them around the school, they were intrigued and curious about the use of display boards and how they played a part in the young people’s learning. They were very impressed by the commitment, knowledge and work ethic shown by staff to the young people in classrooms, in and around the school. They also found it interesting to see young people with varying needs being included in mainstream classes and being part of the class. Holly Urquhart S3 welcomed them using some Spanish sign language she had learnt from the Spanish student last year. She also opted to use both Spanish fingerspelling alphabet and BSL fingerspelling to introduce herself: impressive! The staff included the head teacher, teachers of PE, Maths, Languages and a Spanish sign language interpreter.


Pipes and Drums Dazzle The Ross & Cromarty Pipes & Drums School were competing at the European Pipe Band Championships in Forres on Saturday 24th June and were delighted to be crowned champions of the Novice Juvenile A grade.

Dingwall Academy members are: Isla Beaton Dylan Finnie Andrew Laird Lauren Bell Lucy Finnie Melvine Lynch Aurora MacPherson Liah MacPherson

Would you like to learn pipe band DRUMMING?

Ross and Cromarty Pipes and Drums Schools will offer taster sessions from August 2017.

Two weeks free, no commitment required.

If you are interested please contact Blandine on 07972098023 or through our Face-book page https://m.facebook.com/racpads/


Activity Days

The annual school activity days take place on Tuesday 27th and Wednesday 28th June. Pupils have already opted for activities and the full balance of payment should have been received. The activity days are an opportunity for staff and pupils to enjoy some alternative activities together and are always great fun. There are still some places available for a limited number of activities and we would urge any pupil in S1 – S3 who has not yet chosen to ask at the office for details. Pupils who have not chosen activities will be given an alternative

timetable to follow in school during the two days.


Pupil Achievements

Euann Mightens has been selected by Judo Scotland to represent them in the National teams. It looks like he will have a busy summer, as he competed in Luxembourg on the 9th June, and is also entered for the National Teams on 1st July in Birmingham and Belgium on the 30th July.

Euann has also been selected by Judo Scotland to represent them at the 2017 School Games at Loughborough

University.

Piping

Congratulations to Hamish Drennan (S5) who swept the boards winning 1st in Under 18 MSR, Piobaireachd, Slow Air, Jig and 6/8 March at the Lochaber Provincial Mod in Fort William on Saturday June 9th.


CDT Department: Perfect Posters Mrs Millar’s S3 Graphic Communication class of last term were involved in a graphics poster competition which received 5,500 entries in total across Scotland. This competition was to design a poster for the Edinburgh Fringe Festival 70th anniversary this year, using desktop publishing techniques. A huge well done to Eilidh Kennedy who was shortlisted for the exhibition which will display the top winning designs at the Dynamic Earth building from 6th June until 28th August. The work will be displayed to international audiences throughout the summer and is well worth a visit. Pupils who took part were: Cameron Allison, Laura Beveridge, Caitlin Calder, Molly Cameron, Niamh Chisholm,

William Fraser, Rachael MacLennan, Logan MacRae, Stefen Matheson, Luke McBeath,

Euann Mightens, Luke Nicol, Calum Paterson, Alex Patience, George Pummell, Rona

Dragons Den S3 Business

Our S3 business class this year was tasked with the activity called “Dragons Den”. We had to choose a product and produce a pitch to present in front of Mr MacIntosh, Mrs Robertson, and Mrs Lowe. We were in groups of 4, working with people who we otherwise would maybe not work with, to come up with a 2-3 minute presentation about the products we had chosen. We had to use research skills and work out how to condense information to produce the talks. We had to come up with the price we would charge for our product and work out how much profit we would make. Also how much investment we were looking for from the dragons. We spent 3 periods planning and preparing our presentation before finally showcasing them to the judges. We all thoroughly enjoyed the experience and found it was a good opportunity to experience what it’s like to be an entrepreneur. By Rachel Johnstone, Shannon Miller, Ellie Burdekin, Angela MacIver and Arrin Mackenzie.

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Congratulations to Dingwall Academy musicians, Sophie Cushnie – violin, Jonathan MacKay – violin, Saffron Wittka-Jezewski – piano and Catherine MacKay – viola. These pupils took part in the Highland Young Musician of the Year 2017 which was held at the Newton Hotel in Nairn on Sunday 18th June. Jonathan and Sophie made it through to the final round with Sophie winning Runner Up.

Left to right—Saffron, Jonathan, Sophie

and Catherine

It was a fantastic evening with some outstanding performances from the Highland Young Musicians. Rhona MacKintosh, a violinist from Lochaber High School won the Richardson Trophy for Musical Excellence and Alexander Scott-Brown from Inverness Royal Academy won Most Promising Talent playing the cello. Well done to everyone involved!

Highland Young Musician of the Year 2017

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Dingwall Academy were absolutely delighted to take away the title of Scottish Champions at the Rock Challenge finals in Dundee earlier this month. Rock Challenge requires pupils to choreograph and stage an 8 minute show. This year the Dingwall theme of Dia de los Muertos impressed all with its contrasting moods and uplifting finale. Pupils had been working on the performance since last October, staying in school on Friday and Sunday afternoons. The team includes dancers, set, costume, make up, sound, video and lighting. The regional heats took place at Eden Court and the top 10 Scottish teams met at the Caird Hall in Dundee. Lots of family and friends travelled to support the team and it was a very happy convoy that made it back to Dingwall in the early hours of the morning. The team would like to say an enormous thank you to Mrs Magowan and Miss Brooman who led the team and gave up so much of their own time. The team are being honoured at a civic reception in school hosted by the Dingwall and Seaforth Councillors.

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JUDO

In April, Euann Mightens, Cameron Foster, Adam Dyer, Thomas Inglis and Corey Foster competed at the Sportif international competition in Edinburgh. Euann Mightens placed 5th, and Cameron and Euann both picked up points towards their black belts. Euann, Cameron, Adam and Corey stayed on for the weekend to take part in the training camp which was taken by several Olympians included London 2012 silver medallist Gemma Gibbons and 2 times Olympic silver medallist Neil Adams MBE. Adam Dyer, Kaitlyn Farrelly and Corey Foster competed at the British Schools championships, Adam came home with the silver medal. Cameron Foster, Corey Foster and Kaitlyn Farrelly competed at the Clyde Grand Prix in Paisley on the 28th May, Corey just missed out on a medal, Kaitlyn won the bronze and Cameron came away with the gold medal and more points towards his black belt.

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Ross-Sutherland Schools Athletics Championships 2017

On June 22nd 2017 Dingwall competed at Ross-Sutherlands schools athletics champ and did exceptionally well. After speaking with Mr Dillon it was clear he thought Dingwall did amazingly and did Dingwall very proud. Mrs Cormack also thought that we all did fantastically. Here are some of her thoughts on the event: "As always, I am extremely proud of all the achievements of all our athletes. They worked really hard to get to the Ross-shire sports having to perform well at our own sports day. They are all excellent representatives of the school. Well done!” Some of our achievements included: our girls team captain, Heather Bruce, who in her final ever competition for the school was awarded Most Meritorious Performance for girls with a new record in the 300m, gold in 200m and an equal record in the relay. Also congrats to Arran Buchanan (S4) who was awarded Most Meritorious Performance for boys for new records in the 100m, 200m and U15 boys relay. Team Results

S1 Girls - Team Champions - Relay 1st S1 Boys - 3rd overall - Relay 2nd U15 Girls -Team Champions - Relay 1st U15 Boys -Team Champions - Relay 1st Senior Girls - 2nd Overall - Relay 1st Senior Boys -Team Champions- Relay 1st

Lots of S1 pupils successfully made their debuts for the school in athletics but special mention goes out to two older pupils making their debuts. Molly Cameron (S4) won the senior girls Shot Putt and Amy Alliston (S4) gained 3rd in Senior Girls 800m. All in all, it was an excellent day and Dingwall did a fantastic job!

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On Wednesday 7th June, three Dingwall Academy students represented Highland Schools at The Scottish Disability Open Junior Athletics Championships in Grangemouth. Lewis Scott (S3), John Anderson (S4), and Callum McAllister (S4), took part in a number of different events with Lewis Scott bringing the bronze medal home for the 800m. A fantastic day was had by all. Well done boys!

Athletics at Grangemouth


An article from the Glenwyvis Distillery Newsletter

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On Monday 8th May, twenty-seven eager S3 pupils took part in the Alladale Challenge, a 4-night wild camping, conservation and adventure experience. For most of the pupils, this was their first time wild camping and really getting hands-on with nature. Across the week, both groups participated in a challenging hill walk, tree planting and conservation work, navigation activities and gorge walking. From Day 1, pupils were keen to get stuck in with setting up camp, preparing and lighting the fire and cooking dinner, although some did regret taking a dip in the brisk Highland river passing by the campsite.

By the end of the week, all pupils left with a great sense of achievement and accomplishment and wishing the experience could have only lasted longer!

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Last month, for the third year running, S3 pupils took part in the Youth and Philanthropy Initiative. This programme is funded by the Wood Group where secondary school pupils research issues which affect their local area and identify local charities which deal with these issues. Small groups select charities and create a presentation outlining the charity’s work and explaining how funding is used. On the evening of Thursday, 1st June, the groups with the best presentations competed to win a £3000 cheque to present to their charity. This money was provided by the Wood Group. The presentations were judged by a panel which included last years’ winners, and representatives from Dingwall Academy Rotary Club. It was a lovely evening spent raising awareness of important issues and celebrating the pupils’ hard work. The finalists were: Inverness Food Stuff – Robbie Stewart, Adam Hodkinson, Adam Bradley Day1 – Charley Scally, Rachel Johnston, Rory Cormack Contact the Elderly – Catherine Mackay, Ceitidh Petrie, Ashleigh Stirling, Lucy Ross, Chloe Watson Ross-shire Women’s Aid – Laura McFarlane, Abigail Innes, Issy MacRae, Ellie Chisholm & Kirsty Johnston Maggie’s – Emily More, Eilidh Fyfe, Daisy Hepburn Befriender Highland – Freya Finlayson, Halla Eaglesham, Ellie Burdekin & Lauren Bell The winning group (Adam Hodgkinson, Adam Bradley and Robbie Stewart) represented Inverness Foodstuff, a community project which provides nutritious, hot meals each Tuesday and Thursday lunchtime for the homeless and vulnerable. The £3000 will pay the charity’s rent for the next 7 months. Adam, Adam and Robbie are off to Perth to celebrate their success at the YPI National Event .

Youth and Philanthropy Initiative

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June is the month when the Highlands plays host to the world’s top downhill mountain bikers and teams. More than twenty thousand spectators descend on Fort William to soak up the atmosphere.

Senior pupils from

Dingwall Academy

were treated to a

morning of riding

with last year’s

winner, multiple

World Champion –

Greg Minnaar, on a

wet Tuesday before

the event officially

started. He chatted

about bikes and

training and they got

to follow some world

class lines on the trails of Nevis Range. What was very evident is the amount of

hard work he puts in to get to the level that he is at.

The event officially

opened on the Friday

and schools were invited

to attend for free. Over

one thousand pupils

from across the

highlands spent the day

at Nevis Range. Thirteen

pupils from the

mountain bike club

attended the event, they got the chance to meet the riders, take the gondola to

the top and walk down the course watching the riders practice.

Mountain Bike Club hits Fort William World Cup

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Many of the pupils returned independently to

watch the racing over the weekend. The weather behaved until the very end of Sunday, but

unfortunately it was raining hard when Greg Minnaar finally started his race run.

The training ride that he had with the “Dingwall Academy Crew” appeared to pay off, as

despite the rain, he managed to repeat last year’s win and now leads the World Cup

standings.

A memorable week of mountain biking for so many reasons.

We’re all looking forward to next year already.

Dingwall Academy

A school with a sense of community—a school where by taking collective responsibility, pupils and staff have the

opportunity to achieve extraordinary things.

Headteacher: Mrs K. Cormack RESPECT RESPONSIBILITY HONESTY DETERMINATION

Something missing? Correction? Is there a feature you’d like to see? Get in touch!

Dingwall Academy Dingwall Ross-shire IV15 9LT Tel: 01349 869860 Fax: 01349 869886 Web: www.dingwallacademy.com/contact_us.html

Have a wonderful

Summer Break!

Documents

RESPECT RESPONSIBILITY HONESTY DETERMINATION Dingwall ... · in the transition programme during the Summer holidays and we look forward to welcoming them ... Next June there will